

Thanks for asking! We ask that you make your purchases and head to your car. Picnicking is not allowed in the orchard, which is a food production area. We don't have the space to allow picnicking by our sales room or in the parking lot. Provence at the Orchard has some delicious treats to take with you on your way, though. Check them out and we bet you'll be back for more.
There are several beautiful parks in Chester where you can picnic before or after visiting the farm. Some of our favorites are Hacklebarney State Park, Grove Street Park and Chubb Park.
Grab some donuts and cider and keep your outside day going at the park!
Yes, everyone needs to pay admission. Photographers will pay a site fee, see our photography page. For safety and security reasons, large parties (wedding parties, other large groups) must contact us via our groups page prior to arrival.
Yes! When conditions and weather permit, we run farm wagon rides on weekends and holidays, which are included in your orchard admission. Please be patient as you wait to board and follow our staff’s instructions. Plan your trip appropriately, and also feel free to follow the signs and walk to where we're picking today.
The daily price of a farm pass varies depending on whether it’s a weekend or weekday, and produce availability. Please visit our ticketing page for daily admission rates.
We are not an organic farm. We have found that the most sustainable growing approach is to utilize the growing principles of integrated pest management (IPM). We work closely with Rutgers’ Agriculture Extension Service in the implementation of this approach. IPM allows us to use cultural, biological, and sometimes chemical means to control pests and diseases. Since we are in the northeast where the weather is quite unpredictable, and the frequent rainfall lends itself to disease and pest proliferation, having this flexibility is crucial for us to ensure that we grow marketable produce.
It is a common misconception among Americans that “organic” means “chemical free”. This is simply not the case. The only difference is that organic pesticides are organically, not synthetically, derived. We use both organic and synthetic options at our farm. Giving ourselves this wide range of options allows us to spray small amounts of product as infrequently as possible. When you only have organic pesticides to work with, you will eventually cause resistance issues with the diseases and pests, meaning you have to spray more and more of the same pesticide to get the same result. This increase in application leads to more labor inputs, more fossil fuels being burned, and to the land being generally less productive. The IPM approach allows us to grow our produce in the safest, most efficient, and most sustainable way possible.